More than half of Salvadorans who contribute to a Pension Fund Administrator (AFP) do not trust that their retirement will be enough to live on. For that reason, 50.1% plan to keep working after age 60, whether with a job, their own business, or self-employment, rather than depending on what they receive from the pension system. (Illustrative image Infobae)More than half of Salvadorans who contribute to a Pension Fund Administrator (AFP) do not trust that their retirement will be enough to live on. For that reason, 50.1% plan to keep working after age 60, whether with a job, their own business, or self-employment, rather than depending on what they receive from the pension system. The figure comes from a survey by the University Institute of Public Opinion (Iudop) of the Central American University (UCA), conducted between April 27 and May 27, 2026 among 453 people, with a margin of error of 4.60% and a confidence level of 95%. The report released on Thursday reveals that only 4.8% of contributors expect to live exclusively on their pension. Another 13.6% trust in their personal savings and 6.8% in their own investments. The rejection of working more years or paying higher contributions is not an isolated finding. It occurs as the Salvadoran government negotiates with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) a parametric reform of the pension system, committed under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF). According to Diario El Mundo, the institution suggests that the state reduce its dependence on workers' savings and contain its contingent liabilities. The proposed law would be discussed in 2027, after the Executive branch postponed the original schedule, which called for presenting it in February of this year. An Infobae infographic based on IUDOP data indicates that the monthly pension gap in El Salvador is USD 212 and that 83.5% reject raising the retirement age. (Illustrative image Infobae)That reform would imply paying higher contributions or working more years to retire, two measures that 67.9% and 83.5% of contributors, respectively, reject according to the Iudop-UCA survey. The AFPs deduct 7.25% of each worker's salary, while the employer contributes another 8.75%, completing a contribution rate of 16% on base income. Faced with the possibility of raising that deduction to obtain a higher pension, 67.9% of contributors disagreed and only 32.1% would accept it. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) signed a financial agreement with El Salvador in February 2025 for $1,400 million over 40 months, which contemplates compliance with a series of commitments, including approving a pension reform and making a fiscal adjustment. The rejection is greater regarding the retirement age, set at 60 for men and 55 for women: 83.5% oppose raising it and only 14.7% would support extending it by five years, according to the same measurement. The background of the discussion has a significant financial component. As of August, the country's pension debt reached USD 11,761.31 million, according to the Central Reserve Bank (BCR), as reported by the TCS Ahora portal. That debt is divided between Transition Financing Certificates, at USD 8,393.56 million, and Pension Obligation Certificates, at USD 3,367.75 million. The government will allocate USD 250 million in 2027 to pay the first interest on that debt since the Comprehensive Pension System Law, approved in December 2022, came into effect. That law established a four-year grace period for interest payments, which expires in April 2027. According to Diario El Mundo, the state will recognize an additional USD 2,300 million in accrued but unpaid interest to the AFPs, which will be settled through a new certificate over 46 years at a 7% annual rate. A visual representation of El Salvador's critical financial situation, with a broken piggy bank spilling money at the edge of a cliff, symbolizing the country's pension debt. (Illustrative image Infobae)To retire in El Salvador, one must contribute for 25 years. 65.9% of contributors believe they will achieve this, compared to 30.8% who rule it out. When evaluating the real probability of meeting that requirement, confidence deflates: 54.5% admit they have little chance and 11.4% say they have none. The study included an estimated calculation of each respondent's future pension based on their current salary. 62.7% agreed to do the exercise and, among them, 59.6% would receive a pension of less than USD 401 per month. The system yields an estimated average pension of USD 450. Despite that figure, 76.9% of contributors believe it will not be enough to cover their basic needs in the future. The population calculates it would need USD 662.27 per month for a good standard of living, a difference of USD 212.43 from the pension they actually expect to receive. Miniatures of elderly adults on a calculator displaying "PENSIONES" symbolize the difficulty of insufficient pensions in El Salvador for this age group. (Illustrative image Infobae)Distrust coexists with an information gap. Only 15.7% of contributors said they know the requirements and procedures for retiring, while 84.3% acknowledged not knowing them. There is also no clarity about the destination of salary deductions. Of every three dollars withheld by the AFPs, one goes to the Solidarity Guarantee Account, which finances the lowest pensions of other people, a mechanism that only 24.2% said they knew about. That fund, according to Diario El Mundo citing the IMF report, is one of the points the institution is watching: the government covers unfunded subsidies with resources from that account, which is fed exclusively by workers' contributions. This lack of information is also reflected in the preference for the system's voluntary nature. 80.9% believe that contributing to an AFP should be optional and not mandatory, compared to 16.2% who prefer to keep it as a requirement. Among those who do not contribute to an AFP, the outlook is more uncertain. 58.6% of this group had contributed at some point but stopped, although 65.8% expressed interest in saving again for old age despite not currently doing so. Among non-contributors, 25.6% expect to cover their needs with their own savings and 18.4% plan to keep working. Nearly three in ten, 27.9%, said they do not know how they will sustain their old age. The survey also asked who should be in charge of the system. 30.7% believe the AFPs should continue to manage the funds, while 28.2% prefer that a public institution do so. 24.7% have no defined opinion on the matter. A chart visualizes the monthly revenues of the Salvadoran Pension Institute (ISP) in El Salvador, showing figures from January to May ranging between 44.1 and 96.11 million dollars. (Illustrative image Infobae)Regarding financing, the most supported option, at 48%, is that pensions be paid with the general taxes paid by the entire population, such as VAT or income tax, rather than with individual contributions or specific taxes on workers. That support for a scheme financed with general taxes coincides with the orientation suggested by the IMF, which recommends reducing the state's dependence on workers' savings and strengthening the link between contributions and benefits, ahead of the parametric reform that the Salvadoran Executive committed to presenting to the Legislative Assembly before the end of June 2027.